It is possible that most Unearthen pieces have already chosen their bearers. The uniting of the crystal and empty bullet creates a powerful opposition, causing old dreams and new beginnings to fall upon its bearer. For this reason, the stone with the right properties for your needs will inherently attract you. Each crystal carries distinct properties. Its aims may be to clear your mind, focus your heart on goals you struggle to achieve, provide comfort in difficult times, or simply remind you of the balance between destruction and creation. Please choose your Unearthen piece with care.
Gia Bahm, creator of Unearthen, selects the crystals and bullets according to the histories, qualities, and sizes of the materials. She is a collector, an aestheticist, a creator, and a destructor… much like all of us who are constantly perplexed by the forces of nature and humankind. She lives and works in New York City, balancing her life between wardrobe styling and jewelry design, between summer nights in the woods and winter days on the streets.
Various quartz and crystal species have been chosen to be incorporated into the Unearthen jewellery pieces, the quartz is chosen to offer a range of different colours as well as mystical properties. The extract above from the Unearthen website seems to suggest that the crystals have a mind of their own, much like the introduction of wands and their importance in the first Harry Potter novel in which 'the wand chooses the wizard'. Similarly, it is possible that some of the Unearthen crystals have 'already chosen their bearers'. You may or may not choose to believe such trivial token magic that is presented by a simple hexagonal crystal and quartz, but it's all in good fun isn't it? Even if it is just a gimmick and a bit of a fairy tale wind-up at the moment I'm allured to anything that promises mysticism and dark magic. Anything to brighten up my dull and boring days waiting around for interesting things to actually happen.
If you have a root around and explore more of the Unearthen website you will find at their main page a picture of various crystals. Upon clicking a certain crystal you will be shown a list of General Properties characteristic to that specific crystal as well as Health Benefits. Above shown as an example is the Phantom Quartz a species I didn't know even existed before I looked around the Unearthen website.I like the look of it though, with the unique 'ghost' or 'phantom' which seems to be suspended in the centre of the crystal as a small sample of ectoplasmic goo from something like Ghostbusters. If you're impartial to colour or are deciding between two different types of quartz for an Unearthen necklace, maybe flick through the descriptions of the stones to help you decide.
There is a range of colour combinations of crystal as well as the length of the crystal (small, medium or large). Each of the necklaces shown so far are part of the popular and much imitated crystal necklaces each encased in a bullet shell which is threaded onto a precious metal chain. Each bullet shell case has the word 'Unearthen' inscribed onto it, so you have peace of mind and know you're getting the real deal. Most of the shapes of crystal are a sort of traditional hexagonal shape but there can be clustered pieces on ends of if you are getting a combination of two types of quartz, eg. quartz + aqua aura quartz then there may be up to three pieces of crystal held together by a single bullet shell.
Each piece of jewellery, be it watch, necklace or ring has been hand crafted and since no two crystals are a like, no two pieces are identical and each will have unique properties, shapes and sizes will vary. Do not fret dear reader, be assured that you are getting a robust piece of jewellery that has been created with love and care that will serve you well and may be able to improve your mental well being and sense of self, depending on the species of quartz you get. Also your willingness to believe in and comply with the magic arts may play a hand in your fate...
Gia Bahm, the creator of Unearthen makes a whole assortment of jewellery pieces combining the best of precious metals with semi precious stones. She recycles materials used from old watches and replaces the old watch faces with crystal, rendering them completely useless as an object to use to read the time but transforms them into a unique piece of jewellery I have no yet seen copied. Who really needs a watch to read the time these days? There's usually a mobile phone or computer handy and I think I'd much rather have something like this along my wrist at night to capture what little light there is and shine brightly through the crystal. Each watch is made custom by hand and you can choose either silver or gold and also a skinny or thick band for your watch. The rest is completely up to the artisan to create, but I suppose it is infuriating in not being able to properly anticipate the looks your piece will take on.
Not digging the crystal quartz scene? Not a problem my friend! There is also a range of cast necklaces which have the same shape and size as their crystal quartz counter parts but these little beauties are crafted in a unique process:
It may not look like quartz and has a cool metallic finish to it, but deep down inside there is the heart and sole of the titanium quartz subjected to this casting technique by Gia Bahm for her Unearthen jewellery range.
It really looks like there is water and little bubbles of air through this crystal! I like the contrast of the nitty gritty bullet shell against the serene and bright blue of the crystal. The light catches the crystal magnificently producing a whole spectrum and array of different colours which can only be improved with movement and strong lighting.
I like the vial necklaces even better than the crystal bullet necklaces! It was these necklaces that first attracted me to the brand and allured me to the mystique nature. I have a thing for small glass bottles and vials; I consider them to be a kind of treasure of sorts and these little vials are filled with treasure! I particularly like the design on the top of each of the vials as well as the cute rounded ends of the vials, they look almost like pills but if you were to swallow one of these little puppies I'm sure you'd regret it in the morning!
This vial is a collaboration between Unearthen and Alexandra Cassaniti. The collaborators envisioned the design of this talisman to integrate both the ancient and the immediate. Inspired by crop circles, archaic architecture, and stargazing, this object exemplifies the strengths and mysteries of the past.
The cost of each of the vials differs slightly depending on the material of the metal vial cap whether it be gold or silver, the material of the necklace it self which may be a type of cord or silver and the all important substance within the vial. From left to right we have: Pacific Ocean, Pink Holi Powder, San, Compost and Crude Oil. Originally I fell in love with the Pink Holi Powder vial (though I have no idea what the powder is or does) but my taste does also find the Pacific Ocean vial a small slice of heaven. It has the nicest necklace attached to the vial of all the necklaces and seems to evoke a mood of cleanliness, the calm and the serene. I could do with something that will make me fell less flustered and something that reminds me to clean my room. My third favourite vial necklace is crude oil with a glamorous gold sealed vial which seems to have an Arabian flair to it. Since I do have long, dark brown hair and tan easily maybe that would compliment my Asian heritage and natural looks better? The Pink Holi Powder vial is the nicest to look at I think, and is certainly the most fun to include in my banners for each of my blogs. The colour is just so spectacular.
The newest kids on the block in terms of the Unearthen jewellery collection are these rings which clasp small orbs of crystal quartz or dalmatian jasper. Although I don't really care for birds much myself I do like the claw motif grasping a big meaty gem stone. It reminds me of my fascination with dragons at the age of eight and how much I would read about them guarding hoards of treasure; and then some bigot would come along and kill the beautiful beast so they could be a greedy guts and take all the treasure. The small ring is a guess my homage and respect to all the dragons out there that got slain for treasure.
I like the detail along the ring and the use of a material like dalmatian jasper. Seeing this picture makes me realise how beautiful some semi-precious stones can be once they are used in amazing and interesting jewellery designs.
This photograph really allows you to see the clarity of the quartz, the grandeur of its height from the base of the watch face as well as the sharp pointed end. I like the thin gold watch band the best combined with the impressive pyramid of gemstone sitting on the watch face. I can imagine fiddling around with the dials and such on a long train ride to home and the pride of wearing such a piece. It's not everyday you see a pyramid crystal on someones watch which alters the appearance and legibility of the face of the watch greatly.
My greatest fear with owning a vial necklace would be the repercussions and great anguish I would suffer if the glass were to break. That probably makes me feel less attracted to the crude oil vial, but perhaps if the photograph above is anything to go by, not all the vials are exactly as they are from the site and you can pick and chose the cap metal of your precious vial as well as the necklace material. I would have greater piece of mind with that since I don't really like the simple cord necklaces for the vials. They simply don't do the design justice and sort of cheapen them. That's the only flaw I can see with the vial necklaces and indeed, any of the pieces in the Unearthen arsenal. I'm sure one day when I sort out all my affairs and prioritise my wish list I can see myself one day sporting an Unearthen piece.
One thing I would never turn down should it appear in my Christmas stocking are thick rings made of precious metals such as the ones pictured in this post. The first reminds me a lot of the Globetrotter range by Matina Amanita which called upon buildings and cities from all over the world to inspire their collection. I do quite like the cluster of buildings in yellow gold and rose gold, my top three favourites being the middle and right ring in the top row and the left ring in the bottom row. Russian architecture immortalised in a ring is just so great, I love the enamel and swirling effect. If I were to ever to Russia it would be a photography expedition to enjoy their buildings and their unique structure.
Another design I love when incorporated into ring design is the use of studs- it's not often you see it at all and when it's done well with precious metals the alarm bells go off in my head telling me I must get it. The best brands I know of to get studded rings are New Zealand label Stolen Girlfriends Club as well as Meadowlark; if you're still having problems in your hunt then the best description I can give is to search for pyramid rings rather than stud rings. There can either be pointed and dangerous looking rings or the softened continuous string of studs around the band of a silver ring. It'd be great if I could spoil myself in some of this tough and dark, gritty jewellery but I have an overseas trip to save for.
I love the use of big chunks of raw crystal held in a claw, so by that logic I must therefore have a great adoration for this gold coloured piece and it's rugged. What I love so much about gemstones that are rough cut and look a bit like three-dimensional shattered glass and how the chipped texture really catches the light well and shows off the colour of the crystal material used. It doesn't really matter that the precious metal used for the base and claw of the ring isn't matching gold- in fact if they had chosen to use gold metal for a gold coloured piece of quartz gemstone then it wouldn't have the same sort of impact and gravitas to it. Might even be considered over-kill. No no, this piece is perfect as it is and I love the way it's been crafted, although when trying to braid your hair and you want to wear a ring like this it is recommended you remove it before doing anything involving thin strands of fibres.
As well as rough shaped pieces of geode and quartz clinging together in stalagmites the rough shape and unique sculpting of the precious metal bases also gives it a lovely astrological but home-made look to them. I'd love to get my hands on some rings like these, or better yet find the person who created them because the use of citrine quartz and what looks to be sterling silver as well as rose quartz clusters on a yellow/rose gold metal ring is simply breath-taking. Hard to find in store or online, you are best to search high and low in markets as well as in boutique hippy stores for this sort of thing. Even then it would be difficult to track down. Some of the best things in life are the most elusive and the joy is in the thrill of the hunt rather than hanging that stuffed deer over your mantelpiece.
